Honoring An Honorable Man

STATE COLLEGE, CENTRE COUNTY - A group of students, teachers and community members in Centre County set out to honor civil rights activist Martin Luther King Junior Thursday night. WTAJ News found out how they were spreading Dr. King's Message.

One by one, State College students of all different races read poetry, essays, and showed off their pictures in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. A man who was demanding equality for all people. Lerell Richards is the Co-Executive Director of Penn State's MLK Commemoration, he says he loves the younger generation getting the message. 

"It's never too early to learn about Martin Luther King Junior and we felt like this would be a great way for students to come together and share what they've learned about him."

Penn State students, faculty, and community members, all over the State College area packed the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center. Penn State senior Danasia Hill wants to teach art to elementary school kids. She says that racism is still a very real problem. But seeing kids of different colors read about MLK's impact, gives her hope for the future.

"It just lets me know that it's being taught at home. It starts within the home and on top of that, these kids are in school so it's also being taught in the education system."

Hill says she plans to teach her students many of Dr. King's messages.

"...judge a person not by the color of their skin but the content of their character... Loving each other and not just thinking of yourself, and any one and everyone can be your friend."

After the poetry and paintings, the group pushed for peace, honoring Dr. Martin Luther King with their voices... And their feet.

Step by step, song by song, a peace march honoring Dr. King wound through the University Park campus.

And if you didn't get out this year, Richards says they want you to come out in 2014.

"The youth are our future, so you definitely want to be a part of that, seeing where they start now and just imagining where they're going to be in a year."